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https://github.com/johnpapa/lite-server
Lightweight node server
https://github.com/johnpapa/lite-server
browsersync devserver devtools nodejs npm tools web
Last synced: about 2 months ago
JSON representation
Lightweight node server
- Host: GitHub
- URL: https://github.com/johnpapa/lite-server
- Owner: johnpapa
- License: mit
- Created: 2015-10-18T13:14:44.000Z (almost 9 years ago)
- Default Branch: main
- Last Pushed: 2024-04-25T22:41:49.000Z (5 months ago)
- Last Synced: 2024-07-29T19:59:40.101Z (about 2 months ago)
- Topics: browsersync, devserver, devtools, nodejs, npm, tools, web
- Language: JavaScript
- Homepage:
- Size: 311 KB
- Stars: 2,309
- Watchers: 56
- Forks: 270
- Open Issues: 74
-
Metadata Files:
- Readme: README.md
- Changelog: CHANGELOG.md
- License: LICENSE
Awesome Lists containing this project
README
# lite-server
Lightweight _development only_ node server that serves a web app, opens it in the browser, refreshes when html or javascript change, injects CSS changes using sockets, and has a fallback page when a route is not found.
[](https://david-dm.org/johnpapa/lite-server)
[](http://badge.fury.io/js/lite-server)
[](https://travis-ci.org/johnpapa/lite-server) [](https://greenkeeper.io/)
[](https://dev.azure.com/johnpapa/lite-server/_build/latest?definitionId=4&branchName=main&WT.mc_id=liteserver-github-jopapa)
## Why
BrowserSync does most of what we want in a super fast lightweight development server. It serves the static content, detects changes, refreshes the browser, and offers many customizations.
When creating a SPA there are routes that are only known to the browser. For example, `/customer/21` may be a client side route for an Angular app. If this route is entered manually or linked to directly as the entry point of the Angular app (aka a deep link) the static server will receive the request, because Angular is not loaded yet. The server will not find a match for the route and thus return a 404. The desired behavior in this case is to return the `index.html` (or whatever starting page of the app we have defined). BrowserSync does not automatically allow for a fallback page. But it does allow for custom middleware. This is where `lite-server` steps in.
`lite-server` is a simple customized wrapper around BrowserSync to make it easy to serve SPAs.
## Installation and Usage
The recommended installation method is a local NPM install for your project:
```bash
npm install lite-server --save-dev
yarn add lite-server --dev # or yarn
```
...and add a "script" entry within your project's `package.json` file:
```json
# Inside package.json...
"scripts": {
"dev": "lite-server"
},
```
With the above script entry, you can then start `lite-server` via:
```bash
npm run dev
```
Other options for running locally installed NPM binaries is discussed in this Stack Overflow question: [How to use package installed locally in node_modules](http://stackoverflow.com/q/9679932)
### Using on the fly
lite-server can be used with `npx`
```bash
npx lite-server
```
### Global Installation
lite-server can be also installed globally, if preferred:
```bash
npm install --global lite-server
# To run:
lite-server
```
## Custom Configuration
The default behavior serves from the current folder, opens a browser, and applies a HTML5 route fallback to `./index.html`.
lite-server uses [BrowserSync](https://www.browsersync.io/), and allows for configuration overrides via a local `bs-config.json` or `bs-config.js` file in your project.
You can provide custom path to your config file via `-c` or `--config=` run time options:
```bash
lite-server -c configs/my-bs-config.js
```
For example, to change the server port, watched file paths, and base directory for your project, create a `bs-config.json` in your project's folder:
```json
{
"port": 8000,
"files": ["./src/**/*.{html,htm,css,js}"],
"server": { "baseDir": "./src" }
}
```
You can also provide custom path to your base directory `--baseDir=` run time options:
```bash
lite-server --baseDir="dist"
```
A more complicated example with modifications to the server middleware can be done with a `bs-config.js` file, which requires the `module.exports = { ... };` syntax:
```js
module.exports = {
server: {
middleware: {
// overrides the second middleware default with new settings
1: require('connect-history-api-fallback')({
index: '/index.html',
verbose: true,
}),
},
},
};
```
The `bs-config.js` file may also export a function that receives the lite-server Browsersync instance as its only argument. While not required, the return value of this function will be used to extend the default lite-server configuration.
```js
module.exports = function (bs) {
return {
server: {
middleware: {
// overrides the second middleware default with new settings
1: require('connect-history-api-fallback')({
index: '/index.html',
verbose: true,
}),
},
},
};
};
```
**NOTE:** Keep in mind that when using middleware overrides the specific middleware module must be installed in your project. For the above example, you'll need to do:
```bash
npm install connect-history-api-fallback --save-dev
```
...otherwise you'll get an error similar to:
```bash
Error: Cannot find module 'connect-history-api-fallback'
```
Another example: To remove one of the [default middlewares](./lib/config-defaults.js), such as `connect-logger`, you can set it's array index to `null`:
```js
module.exports = {
server: {
middleware: {
0: null, // removes default `connect-logger` middleware
},
},
};
```
A list of the entire set of BrowserSync options can be found in its docs:
## Testing
When using `lite-server` to run end to end tests, we may not want to log verbosely. We may also want to prevent the browser from opening. These options in the `bs-config.js` will silence all logging from `lite-server`:
```js
open: false
logLevel: "silent",
server: {
middleware: {
0: null
}
}
```
## Known Issues
CSS with Angular 2 is embedded thus even though BrowserSync detects the file change to CSS, it does not inject the file via sockets. As a workaround, `injectChanges` defaults to `false`.
## Contributing
1. Fork and clone it
1. Install dependencies: `npm install`
1. Create a feature branch: `git checkout -b new-feature`
1. Commit changes: `git commit -am 'Added a feature'`
1. Run static code analysis and unit tests: `npm test`
1. Push to the remote branch: `git push origin new-feature`
1. Create a new [Pull Request](https://github.com/johnpapa/lite-server/pull/new/main)
## License
Code released under the [MIT license](./LICENSE).